16 months old!

Nate is 16 months old today. I know I always say it, but where has all the time gone? My love grows for him each and every day. That seems hard to believe because my heart was so full of love for him as soon as I knew he was growing inside of me and when I first laid eyes on him in the hospital, but it is true. He is my world. He lights up every day, and warms my heart. He seems to know when I need a tender moment after a long day of commuting and work. He is such a sweet boy that some days, Grammy doesn't even want to give him back. A few other days are a little different story. All in all, he is just a good kid!! I sure hope we don't mess him up ;-)!!

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Based on his 15 month appt a month ago, he is doing great. He is off the charts for gross and fine motor skills as well as socialization, but speech is a different story. At the time of the appt., he really wasn't using any words regularly. Lately, we think we have heard: mama, dada, up, yes, thank you, milk, ball, bye-bye, and a few others we can't make out but think one of them might be blanket. He only uses them when he wants to, and doesn't really do it when prompted. I think it is his way of letting me know that he knows the words but he isn't going to say them just to humor me. Sometimes, he is in the right mood and will come give us a kiss, other times it doesn't matter how many times I ask him, he is just distracted by all his toys and whatever is going on in that little head of his or should I say big head of his. As of the appt, his head is in the 90th percentile, with weight in the 75th and heighth in the 50th. I thought kids thinned out when they started running and walking, but not Nate, he went up from 50th percentile to the 75th. We love his chubb, though, and are not anxious to see it go away. During camp at the CDC, he got designated as a future "Marine Sergeant" since he is stout and has loud vocals when he is excited.

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I love how he scrunches up his nose when he is frustrated or trying to figure things out. I love how he kicks his leg up to the side as high as he can and climbs up on the couch. It is so cute to see him plopped up there and turned around sitting like a big boy. When he claps his hands, he typically holds one hand still and uses the other to hit it--too cute! It is fun to watch him go down the front sidewalk of our house. It has random single steps every few feet, and it is so fun to see him maneuver them. He stops about a foot shy of each step to get down on his hands and knees to climb down the step. I love how he squeals in excitement or laughs out loud. He has the sweetest little voice. Most of all, I love his smile. When I pick him up from his crib or from his Grammy's in the afternoon, his smile melts my heart. He also has the cutest little dimples just over the top of each side of his lips. I hope he doesn't grow out of them!

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A few more facts: He loves his blanket, bat, stacking cups and balls, he pushes his car all over the house, he loves splashing in the bath and just recently learned how to get out of the bath, he loves playing at the swimming pool, he loves to be chased around the living room, he loves climbing the stairs to his playroom and has recently learned how to get down them, and he loves to eat! He still doesn't sit still much to read books or watch a video, which is probably why his verbal skills haven't kicked in yet. He is just too busy playing and discovering new things. Finally, he is a good night-time and nap sleeper. Praise the Lord for a son after my own heart!!

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Foods he loves: cheese, fruit--any and all, breakfast pockets, homemade blueberry or banana pancakes, ravioli, mac and cheese, Chick-fil-A, little smokies, lean pockets, little hamburgers and chicken sandwhiches found at Target, bite-size nilla wafers (thanks Pierce), animal crackers, carrots, peas, little crunchies-cheese flavored, apple sauce---basically anything. He is not a big fan of choc. chip cookies or pancakes, or any cake or muffin items and is sometimes not sure about ice cream. Isn't that odd? We have really been able to limit his sweets because he loves fruit so much, and hasn't acquired a taste for the other yet. Maybe that is because I have really limited it. Who knows, I am sure he will discover the appeal soon enough!

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I just loved Nate's expression on this last picture--so I had to include it!

NATE, WE LOVE YOU!!!---Mommy and Daddy